Fashion Victim in Africa

Friday, December 18, 2009

Finally I did it , I completed my 50000 words without finishing my novel. But still feel good about having met the goal assigned. What's my next step. As I have an hyperactive mind , hardly able to concentrate on one thing, constantly multi tasking , I stopped novel writing for 2 weeks, leaving my blog reader angry http://naboulove.wordpress.com but promising myself to finsh the current novel I post weekly on my site (in french sorry) . I have promised my future editor to review the manuscripts I have completed 10 years ago & kept in my closte. I wasn't ready then for my coming out as a possible WRITER. But time is passing by & I have to live my passion, even though , my work is also a passion to me - you see I am hyper & have attention disorder-. Anyway, i felt relieved to have kept my pace, writing averyday a bit following a regular pace.So now let's go back to the priorities: 1-Finish novel 2 for online readers by mid January (InshAllah)-.2-Edit & Rewrite Novel 1 for the what ? 4th times...3-Finish NanoNovel some time next year or simultaneously..

In the meantime, still run my business & take care of home . Reminds you of someone. OOh you? Yep welcome to the busy mums club & loving it. So I still have 2 poetry books ready for publishing, one in French & one in English. All this is part of my coming out...

Wish me good Luck coz As busy as I might seem, I am a quite a professional procrastinator...

Monday, November 23, 2009

How did I get Myself into National Novel Writing Month? I still wonder...I already had an ongoing writing project,I have been writing on for the last 5 months, doing it for my pleasure & at my pace. Then reading & googling through the internet, i accidentally found http://nanowrimo.org & I registered. I had no idea on what I was going to write at first but as I registered on Oct 8th , I still had " weeks to think about a theme, a plot , characters & all those things that make a novel. I reduced drastically my facebook procarstination & gathered vague ideas on what could be my novel outline. I found a title, which was good enough for me to start from & then I couldn't way for nov 1st to come. I joined the Africa , Elsewhere group & the France Group, as I didn't feel ready to take the risk of writing a full novel in English. I felt a bit lonely with the 2/3 Kinshasa wrimos lost on the site & hopefully made one or two very nice writing buddies. For once, i didn't procrastinate, as i hate being in the loosers' camps & I managed to write up to date 43009 words. But I must confess the following:

I am a word perfectionnist & i feel like correcting all the time

My Facebook wrimos & writing buddies have been helpful in encouraging me , so dont do it alone, it's depressing

I go back & forth in the story, changing who my MC is (main character) but i have a story

Quoting Hemingway "the first draft of anything is crap" I feel relieved coz my novel is crap at that stage,

I have no clue on the end of my story so i will just let it flow until i reach 50K & hopefully will get back to it in 2010 when I finish my current story

I am proud of myself...

I hope i can post again next week & tell you I won , I won.

So folks I hope next yea i will drag more African wrimos in with me in the challenge, I never though i would have made it , given my multiple activities & my kids . But yes You can was saying to me that little voice.

I must thank Steve Jobs as my Iphone has been a valuable partner, as i could write bits & pieces on it until i passed 43K , and know i have to go writing, twittering, then facebooking. So see you at 50K. It feels good to write write write even with rthe frustration of my inner editor.

Sunday, November 22, 2009

After years of relaxing, coloring, breading, weaving & extending my persecuted black hair, i made a vow on that day of Dec 2008: " I shall not relax my hair for few years" how many years? asked my mum, I just couldn't answer, ignored the question & decided to respect that early year 2009 resolution. Oh My what a journey it has been. I learned that this phase is called transitioning. Waouh. From chemically processed hair to baby virgin hair? Anyway , the only way i found to look sexy enogh while doing it , was ..... "Braiding" then "weaving" my hair. Yes honestly , i only feel confident & sexy with my Brazilian bunch of bought hair flowing around my face but that doesn't stop me from proudly claiming to whoever i meet " I stopped relaxing my hair!". Some look at me like i lost my head by wanting to loose my hair's ability to be straightened; others woyld grin doubtfully & there is another category who encourage me but still remind me that " Are you going to carry an afro" ironically. Anyway, i stuck to my choice, alternatively breading & weaving my hair, progressively cutting all the relaxed ends & now 10 months later, I must admit that I am quite happy with the result. My hair feels so soft & silky, unlike what we have always thought of our nappy wool. And I feel so proud of myself even though i still carry my sexy weaves, waiting for the day my Afro grows so that i can spot it along with my stilish designer lol outfits. So whoever wants to try & take the step forward, you won't regret it. I feel so Ecological & Green since then , & I know that next year-InshAllah- I will face more Hair Challenges as millions of black women around the world. So sisterz I just accepted that BLACK HAIR IS...NATURAL & INDEED BEAUTIFUL.

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Friday, November 7, 2008 at 10:52pmIt has been one of the most exciting night of my life, i remembered that day of 1989 when Berlin wall was destroyed and i was crying but i was witnessing european history! But this 4th of November 2008 around 3 pm kinshasa time, we were witnessing our own history, a man of talent,eloquent and intelligent has been elected 44th President of the USA. And that man happened to be an african american.Yes he has been chosen for his competencies without any regard for his colour! All the skeptics got a shock and the world felt the rise of a new order,a"new deal", I just remembered Goree Island Slave house and ElMINA fort & Castle, i saw Kounta Kinte chained and taken by force to America,i thought about all my west indian brothers, the Afro latinos and all our ancestors forced out of Africa to work as slaves...and I cried,cried,cried ,tears of joy,tears of hope, tears of faith, tears of relief! I thought about Diallo shot for the colour of his skin, i thought about all the sacrificed generations kept in ignorance.denied access to education bcoz they had the wrong skin colour...and once again tears were rolling down my cheeks, tears with the sweet taste of Victory, victory over racism.And to my friends Maha who is Arab-American, Olivia who is taiwanese- american, Christophe who is burundese-american,my sons who are also us citizens i am just saying that our dream became reality! And that from 2day some barriers fell in American showing a great example to the world.Yes we can.

Monday, November 3, 2008 at 12:45amAfter centuries of slavery,deportation,colonization,segregation and marginalization, the day is close ... REMEMBER Rosa Parks, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, their fights,their sacrifices in the name of humanity...YES Humanity , i dont agree with equality coz its a fact but they have to be respected as human beings full stop..these last 20 years have witnessed turmoils but also positive changes not to mention one the greatest event in the overall black history (@ large in my understanding), that Day when Xolilala Nelson Mandela was set free of Robben Island...AS a witness of history i cried, conscious that a strong signal was sent to the world. And Now in D- 2 Barack Obama is running for Presidency...do i support because he is black? NOT only but mostly because he is brilliant and i think that he can make a difference and revive the fading American Dream, tarnished with years of unjustified and disorganized occupations costing lives of us soldiers. So All this to say the humiliation of segregation was not in vain and hoping for a better future with a reduced economical segregation.I remember my friend living in Buckhead always taken for a nannx coz she was black whereas she was the owner of her house in a rich white only area and am talking about our time...So even if we cant vote,our prayers,positive vibes and blessings go to Senator Obama.we are all Americans in our heart because of the pride we feel about u...that means 2moro a Jewish, an Arab, a Latino ,a native indian or an Asian can lead the fate of the US OF A...And then the dream of all those whose names are registered in Ellis Island is about to come true: the materialization of the AMERICAN DREAM through the Victory of Barack Obama..INSHALLAH!

Sunday, January 25, 2009 at 10:56pmWho am i? Where do i come from? Coming from a certain family where used to count much more than money, i was raised keeping in mind the stories of my forefathers, always being remembered that wherever life takes me , i am who i am , the granddaughter of x and a descent of the last Kings of Senegal. A mixed heritage that i have been carrying proudly wherever the wind pushed me.. I was raised with old fashioned values that were supposedly in application in Senegal but my Mum didnt realize that whatever values were on in the early 70's, they were no more really in in the 90's with the shifts in our society where greed had replaced customs and values..But am soo grateful to have been taught old fashioned values they are worth billions to me and they have helped me evolve in various countries and cultures with a tolerant eye. Digesting and adapt those that attracted me and learning from the great school of life day after day.. Alex Haley researching his roots opened the door to a whole world to African Americans: yes they had a great great great Grand father named Kounta kinté, and they came from a proud nation.Many of our brothers in thd US undergo DNA test to identify their tribe of origin: fulani? Yoruba? Bantu? Always thd same question?: where do i come from ? What is the history of my family? I know some of u might think that its a useless knowledge but for me who has never really lived in the country where i was born , i really thank my Mum who has been giving me inside information on my family History, who made sure i would go to my village every time i step my foot in Senegal to greet my father's mum.. And when my Mum's father was alive, i made sure i was spending as much time as i could with him to learn about my Roots. Did that help me a lot to build my character?? I guess so! Cause knowing who u are and where u comd from will help u trace ur path and have a clearer vision on where u want to go.., or so i think. And each country i have been to, eacb person with his/her specificity, past, history has been a great school and study ground on my Life on going MBA degree.. And i am realizing that soooo many of us in spite of all the european influences are holding on to our roots no matter where we live and it is our strenght to walk through life with pride and dignity. As i said earlier this week my village is Goumbe Guéoul in Senegal but i have a village of heary in each country where i hv made brothers and sisters of heart. And this wealth is my heritage to my children. My heritage lives in me and will continue to live trough my children even if being Americans, they could become President of the USA but always reaffirm with pride like Barack Hussein Obama that his father is Luo from Kenya.tomorrow will tell. We grew from our roots and a tree separated from his roots wil fall and die.......

Sunday, October 25, 2009

First i want to thank the diet support team for their comments and ideas!!! Am on the right track! I will fit into my favorite jeans in few days!!! Ok thats not the purpose of this note! Am sick and tired of people telling me age is a number coz when i was 18 or 20, I Could go to Keur Samba till 7 am on friday nights' and then take my school bag from Maimouna and run to an exam. IT was then...

If I Go to bed after 3 am ,it takes 3 days to my body to recover,it is now.

In those days Acne was my problem,now i have a flawless skin but every morning and evening Estée Lauder guides my life. Advanced Night, eye, perfectionist,idealist, hydracomplete,etcetera,etcetera...HOW THAT SEPHORA Lady loves me. Strivectine, Perricone,Shisheido,Orlane,la Prairie; I Tried them all... Do they work maybe coz people tell me "âge is a number"! Liars!

My souvenirs of the guys dancing Jimmy Gill...am sure my sister Fatima 18 doesnt know him... The Clarence & Charles Jourdan shops where we use to buy our shoes were closed years ago! Hell! For me NY was the twin towers... LADUREE has become a chain of tea rooms,and Champs Elysées was so exclusive..it was then so dont tell me age is just a number!!! Love ya all! When i was 20, i didnt need to diet...